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Monsanto beats, warns
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July 25, 2001: 9:56 a.m. ET
Roundup sales help biotech firm top 2Q estimates; 3Q warning given
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Chemical maker Monsanto Co. reported higher second-quarter earnings Tuesday, beating Wall Street expectations largely on surging sales of its popular weed killer Roundup.
But the agricultural and biotechnology firm warned of a wider-than-anticipated third-quarter loss, blaming negative overseas currency transactions, which are likely to affect sales growth. Monsanto (MON: up $1.55 to $33.59, Research, Estimates) said it now expects a third quarter loss of about 13 cents a share, unchanged from a year ago. Analysts on average had been forecasting a loss of 4 cents a share, according to earnings tracker First Call.
For the second quarter, St. Louis-based Monsanto reported earnings of $421 million, or $1.60 a diluted share, excluding nonrecurring items, compared with $402 million, or $1.56 a share a year earlier. Analysts' on average anticipated $1.54 a share, according to First Call.
Second-quarter sales were flat from the prior year at about $2 billion.
During the quarter, Monsanto incurred a $45 million restructuring charge as it exited certain crop businesses. 
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